"No remorse from the parties involved, parents act as coaches," teacher testimony
Victim chose extreme measures... perpetrator admitted to Seoul National University
The judgment document of the administrative lawsuit filed by the couple of lawyer Jeong Sun-shin (57), who was appointed as the head of the National Investigation Headquarters but was dismissed due to their son's school violence perpetration, requesting the cancellation of their son's forced transfer, has been disclosed. The judgment document revealed that the couple claimed their son's school violence was verbal abuse and actively tried to evade responsibility by directly editing their son's statement.
According to a Yonhap News report on the 26th, Jeong's son, who entered a famous autonomous private high school in Gangwon Province in 2017, continuously subjected a classmate A, who lived in the same dormitory room, to verbal abuse based on his hometown from the first semester of the first grade, and was transferred the following year. As the legal representatives of their then minor son, the Jeong couple filed an administrative lawsuit to cancel the transfer order but ultimately lost the case at the Supreme Court in April 2019.
The administrative lawsuit judgment document shows that at the School Violence Countermeasure Autonomous Committee (School Violence Committee) meeting held on March 22, 2018, Jeong's side defended that their son's school violence was not physical violence but 'verbal abuse.' The Jeong couple said, "If there had been physical hitting, there would be no excuse, but since it is verbal abuse, the context seems important."
Their legal representative also argued during the lawsuit that "It is difficult to see that a high school male student generally suffers the same damage as A from the level of verbal abuse claimed by A, and personal temperament or academic stress may have influenced it," and claimed "there is no clear causal relationship between verbal abuse and A's damage."
There was also testimony that the Jeong couple guided their son's statement and directly edited the statement. A teacher at the high school Jeong's son attended pointed out Jeong's statement reversal at the Gangwon Province School Violence Committee meeting on June 29, 2018, saying, "I think (Jeong) is not showing any remorse at all." He added, "Jeong's parents were afraid to admit responsibility, so the second statement was entirely coached by the parents," and testified, "Whenever we tried to guide even a little, they showed an attitude of evading responsibility."
The teacher also said, "The parents are blocking a lot." He said, "The first statement was written, but immediately after receiving feedback from the parents, they said it should not be written that way and brought it back for correction," and "After meeting the parents, it changes again." At this meeting, a committee member pointed out to Jeong's mother, "I read the submitted opinion letter, and it seems you do not think you did wrong," and said, "Asking for forgiveness from people requires sincerity."
The committee members evaluated Jeong's school violence as '16 points,' corresponding to transfer or expulsion under the perpetrator student action standards. The severity, continuity, and intentionality of the violence were all rated as 'high,' each receiving 3 points. The perpetrator student's level of remorse was low (3 points), and the degree of reconciliation was 'none at all' (4 points).
The victim A experienced anxiety symptoms that made his body tremble just by hearing Jeong's name due to this incident and was hospitalized for post-traumatic stress disorder, moderate depressive episodes, and panic disorder. Additionally, he was unable to attend school from February 2018 and even attempted suicide.
Classmates who attended school together testified that Jeong boasted about his father, who was a prosecutor at the time, saying, "My dad knows many people, and if he is close to the judge, we will definitely win the trial." The teacher's testimony also remains in the meeting minutes, stating, "(Jeong) treats students he judges to be of a higher rank very well, but has a habit of creating an atmosphere that humiliates students he considers lower rank. There is not just one victim, but other victim students as well."
Critical Posts Continue in Seoul National University Community Where Jeong's Son Is Enrolled
Meanwhile, critical posts about Jeong are pouring into the online community of Seoul National University, where Jeong is enrolled.
Many students sympathized with posts saying, "The victim trembles just hearing the perpetrator's name and attempted suicide, but the perpetrator lives attending a prestigious university from a wealthy family, which is unfair," and opinions demanding disciplinary action such as "Shouldn't he be expelled?" and "Please express a position from the college or student council" are also emerging.
Some have questioned how Jeong, the school violence perpetrator, was admitted to Seoul National University, but it is known that Jeong entered Seoul National University in 2020 through the regular admission process, which reflects 100% of the College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT) scores.
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